Loose-leaf binder



Oct. 15, 1929. J. c. DAWSON LOOSE LEAF BINDER Original Filed Dec. 28, 1926 iffy/Z 07 mas aflawson Patented Oct. 15, 1929 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE JAMES C. DAWSON, OF'WEBSTER GROVES, MISSOURI, ASSIGNOR T ELMA N. DAWSON,

' or WEBSTER GROVES, MISSOURI LOOSE-LEAF BINDER Application filed December 28, 1926, Serial No. 157,464. Renewed February 4, 1929.

By custom each size of ring book binder has a standard diameter of wire for each diameter of ring, and a standard spacing for the rings. Each size of sheet of ring book paper has a standard punching, and the di- 4 ameter of the holes corresponds to the rings for one inch ring books. When, therefore, the number of sheets exceeds the capacity of a one inch ring book, two or more books must be used because the punching of the paper prevents the sheets beingtransferred to a ring book of larger capacity.

An eflort to overcome this limitation has been made by the use of books provided with tongues or flaps perforated to receive adjustable screws which also pass through the sheets of paper, but while this construction can-be made to take any number of sheets the operation of inserting or removing the sheets is so tedious and time consuming that people of the type usually in charge of such books will not keep them posted up to date.

The object of this invention is to provide a binder thatwill take standard paper and permit the capacity to be varied to suit conditions and the sheets to be removed or inserted with ease and celerity.

A further object of the invention is to permit the sheets to be removed and replaced and to be safely and easily handled as a unit.

Further objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent as the disclosure proceeds and the description is read in connection with the accompanying drawings in which Fig. 1 is a plan view of an assembled binder made according to this invention Fig. 2 is a plan view of a stack of sheets and auxiliary binder plates forming a unit for assembly with the binder shown in Fig. 1;

Figs. 3 and 4 are longitudinal vertical sections taken on the lines 33 and 4-4 respectively of Fig. 1;

Fig. 5 is a side elevation of the binder pulled apart and the unit ready to be assembled with the binder.

The binder includes two separable binder bars 10 and 11 which, for convenience, are called main binder bars. Each such bar is of angular form, the vertical flanges 12 and 13 thereof lying alongside, as best illustrated in Figs. 3 and 4, and cooperating to close the back of the binder and protect the edges of the sheets to be bound. The covering material 14 extends along both sides of the vertical flanges 12 and 13 and along the outer sides of the horizontal flanges and thence over the leaves 15 of the back which are connected to the binder bars 10 and 11 by hinges 16.

The sheets of paper 17 are bound into a unit between a pair of auxiliary binder bars 18 and 19. Adjacent to the front edges of these bars there is located a set of relatively small posts, generally indicated at A, Figs. 4 and 5, which are preferably composed of tubular post sections 20 secured to the lower auxiliary binder bar 18 and inner post sections 21 secured to the upper auxiliary binder bar 19, and telescoping with the tubular post sections 20. These posts A are arranged so near the front edges of the auxiliary binder bar and so near the hinges 16 as to permit the leaves to be open Wide when the book is in use.

The main binder bars are secured together and the auxiliary binder bars are held assembled with the main binder bars by a set of relatively large posts, generally indicated by B and including tubular post sections 22 secured to the lower main binder bar and inner post sections 23 secured to the upper main binder bar and telescoping with the post sections 22. The lower auxiliary binder bar I 18 is perforated to receive the post sections 22 and the upper auxiliary binder bar 19 is perforated to receive the post section 23, all in substantially the relationship shown in Fig. 4. However, it is consistent with the invention to use other forms of posts or to perforate the bar 19 to receive the post sections 22.

.and will receive only the strains due to the weight of the paper, they can be made relatively small and thereby permit binders embodying this invention to have a capacity for a very great number of sheets.

The main binder bar 10 is provided with an upwardly projecting locking post 24 (Fig. 3) threaded to receive a long locking screw 25 having a head 26 for cooperation with the latch bar 27 secured to the upper main binder bar 11 by headed pins 28 extending through slots 29 in the latch bar. The slots are of sufficient length to permit the bar to move lengthwise a distance corresponding to the key hole slot 29 whereby the binder parts ma be secured to ether or released in an obvious manner. By adjusting the screw 25 the capacity of the binder may be varied to suit conditions within the limit of the particular structure. The latch post B and the locking post take all the strains of holding the binder posts together and relieve the relatively small posts A of all except the weight of the paper.

The locking post 24 extends through a perforation 30 in the lower auxiliary binder bar and the upper auxiliary binder bar has a slot 30 to give clearance to the threads of the screw 25.

Binders embodying this invention are particularly useful where the package of sheets are to be removed and replaced and otherwise handled as units. For example, men reading gas and electric meters may take a stack of sheets relating to a days work and on the next day remove that stack of sheets as a unit and replace it by another unit corresponding to the next days work. The units turned in can be conveniently handled by clerks in compiling the data, making out the bills, and other things, either with or without additional binder mechanism.

So far as I am aware it is entirely new to provide auxiliary and main binder bars permitting this sort of operation and while I have made use of specific description and illustration in order that the disclosure may be clear, it is not intended to thereby limit the claims. I

' I claim as my invention-- 1. In a loose leafbinder, a pair of separable binder bars, means for securing the bars in spaced relation including a set of large telescoping posts spaced from the front edges of the bars, a pair of auxiliary binder bars perforated to receive the telescoping posts, and a set of small telescoping posts adjacent to the front edges of the supplemental bars and adapted to be received in perforations in the sheets of paper to be bound.

2. In a loose leaf binder, upper and lower separable binder bars, a set of large posts projecting upwardly from the lower bar, means for securing the upper bar in fixed relation to the lower bar, a pair of separable auxiliary bars between the first-mentioned bars and secured thereto by the large posts, and a set of small telescoping posts carried by the auxiliary bars adjacent to their front edges.

3. In a loose leaf binder, upper and lower separable main binder bars, a pair of separable auxiliary binder bars, a set of small telescoping posts on the auxiliary binder bars, a set of large tubular posts on the lower main binder bar extending through the lower auxiliary binder bar, a set of complementary posts on the main upper binder bar extending through the upper auxiliary binder bar and telescoping with said large posts, and extensible means for locking the binder bars together. 4. In a loose leaf binder, upper and lower separable main binder bars, a pair of separable auxiliary binder bars, a set of small telescoping posts on the auxiliary'binder bars, a set of large tubular posts on the lowermain binder bar extending through the lower aux- 1;;

iliary binder bar, a set of complementary posts on the main upper binder bar extending through the upper auxiliary binder bar and telescoping with said large posts, an extensible post carried by the main lower binder bar and projecting through the upper main binder bar, and a latch on the latter for engagement with the posts.

5. In a loose leaf binder, main upper and lower separable binder bars, means for securv.

ing them together, a pair of auxiliary binder bars, posts associated with .the auxiliary binder bars adjacent their front edges for holding sheets of paper and means on the main binder bars cooperating with the auxiliary binder bars adjacent to theirrear edges for securing the main and auxiliary binder bars together.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature.

JAMES C. DAWSON. 

